Today is our last full day and we were free to do what we wanted.
The hotels Christmas tree has gone up and is lovely.
After yesterday's marathon sightseeing we thought a relaxing time on Copacabana Beach would fit the bill. The sand is fine and light coloured and there were lots of people taking advantage of it. But hardly anyone in the water. That's because the bay is washed by currents coming up from the Antarctic. Think Blackpool but colder.
There were lots of sellers of just about everything but they were not pushy or a nuisance. There were sellers of pareos, bikinis, jewellery, tablecloths, rugs, hammocks, paintings, books, sun creams,, Arab food (?), ice creams, fruit, king prawn kebabs with a courtesy diarrhoea tablet, cashew nuts, popcorn, coconuts and lots of others I can't remember.
There were lots of sellers of just about everything but they were not pushy or a nuisance. There were sellers of pareos, bikinis, jewellery, tablecloths, rugs, hammocks, paintings, books, sun creams,, Arab food (?), ice creams, fruit, king prawn kebabs with a courtesy diarrhoea tablet, cashew nuts, popcorn, coconuts and lots of others I can't remember.
There were also lots of ladies in tiny thongs who probably shouldn't have been
It was strange weather as suddenly a bank of white mist, travelling really fast would sweep across filling the whole sky so you couldn't see the hotel across the road, let alone Sugar Loaf Mountain..
Then it cleared just as fast but left a narrow low lying swathe against the mountain.
In the evening, we walked the length of the promenade looking for the Copacabana Palace Hotel, which has an interesting history. It's a magnificent 5star place built in the 20's. It's the place the rich and famous stayed. When the owner died he left it to his playboy son who worked his way through his inheritance until he was penniless. At the age of 85 he became a tour guide. We had a very expensive cocktail which to be honest was nothing special so we made sure we ate every last cashew and olive to get our money's worth
. Another fantastic meal, a walk back along the prom passing through the evening market. Many of the restaurants and bars had live music and it was a very lively place to be.
I have had a cold for a couple of days now, don't know where that came from so I called in at a pharmacy for some night nurse or similar. Not many people speak English or even Spanish here so I acted out my various symptoms to a very bemused assistant..
It was strange weather as suddenly a bank of white mist, travelling really fast would sweep across filling the whole sky so you couldn't see the hotel across the road, let alone Sugar Loaf Mountain..
Then it cleared just as fast but left a narrow low lying swathe against the mountain.
Lynn went to sunbathe round the pool and do her blog and I had a walk down to the Fort. It looked interesting but there were no guides in English or Spanish so I was non the wiser about it all. However as a pensioner, I got in free and I have to say that the soldier in the photo had a very toy town uniform on.
In the evening, we walked the length of the promenade looking for the Copacabana Palace Hotel, which has an interesting history. It's a magnificent 5star place built in the 20's. It's the place the rich and famous stayed. When the owner died he left it to his playboy son who worked his way through his inheritance until he was penniless. At the age of 85 he became a tour guide. We had a very expensive cocktail which to be honest was nothing special so we made sure we ate every last cashew and olive to get our money's worth
I have had a cold for a couple of days now, don't know where that came from so I called in at a pharmacy for some night nurse or similar. Not many people speak English or even Spanish here so I acted out my various symptoms to a very bemused assistant..
Omg that truely is a thong to far!!! Hope your cold improves before your flight back to blighty! x
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